...Mayeux agrees with Gopnik’s ideas about incarceration, and she hopes that many people will read his argument. Gopnik strongly believes that America’s criminal-justice system is not properly punishing criminals. He reports that criminals with minor offenses should not be so harshly punished, suggesting that the justice system should eliminate mandatory sentences and that a judge should decide the criminals sentence by using common sense. The author also supports his argument by describing how being in prison is like locking oneself into their bathroom and living there for the next ten years, and by pointing out that in prisons, “more than seventy thousand prisoners are raped each year” (Gopnik). Clearly Gopnik is trying to get as much attention on the...
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...dark past behind our beloved nation. Before the industrial age and Roaring 20’s, there was the time of slavery and Jim Crow, where the land of the free was a cruel and discriminatory place for people of color. Slavery ended in 1865, the Jim Crow Laws took over in 1877 until 1954, and we see America’s regret for their actions after these time periods, until the rise of mass incarceration and “The War on drugs” in 1971; soon afterwards, mass...
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...The social problem or issue I wish to address is mass incarceration of African Americans as it affects the adolescent population. In Mendel study (as cited in Rubinstein, Craven & McCormack, 2014) “African American youth accounts for 16% of the total number of adolescent in the United States and make up nearly 40% of the total youth currently imprison”. Our social justice’s system has been driven by racism in the days of slavery till today as more and more black and brown adolescents are languishing in jail. In addition to this, Arya and Augarten study (as cited in Rubinstein et al, 2014) found that “African American youth are more likely to be sentenced in adult jails compared to their White counterparts.” African American adolescents are...
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...The Mass incarceration of people of color and felony disenfranchisement is a tool that is being utilized to continue on with legalized slavery. Through Mass incarceration and felony disenfranchisement it is easier to control people of color and legally discriminate against those who have been convicted of felonies by implementing laws that enable them to be productive citizens upon their return to society. The United States has a very dark history or oppressing the minority, this has been done through many practices such as slavery, Jim Crow laws etc. Although America has made strides in certain areas regarding equal quality of living for all, America still has ways to go. The oppressive was and discriminatory nature of America continues as...
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...number is closer to 2,220,300. You might be wondering why many websites and people say this. This is because many people do not want to believe that Mass Incarceration exists. Mass Incarceration is a term used by historians and others to describe the massive increase in incarceration rates during the past forty to forty five years. There are currently 1.3 million people locked up in state prisons, with 630,000 of them being locked up in local jails. Most people currently in custody are facing charges for non-violent drug offenses. Some of those people are also first time offenders. Thirty Four thousand people locked up in local jails are under the age of twentyone....
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...Prison labor is a form of legal slavery or involuntary servitude among prisoners in state penitentiaries. Prison labor is explicitly permitted by the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution that serves as a punishment for the action of committing a crime (U.S. Const. amend. XIII). Prison labor is the re-enslavement of Americans, that has largely discriminated against African Americans and other minorities. There is legislation associated with the increase of prison populations that has mainly targeted African Americans, including but not limited to mass incarceration through the War on Drugs and the use mandatory minimums. The War on Drugs, implemented by Richard Nixon’s administration, expedited the disproportionate mass incarceration of African Americans and Latinos for mandatory minimums relating to drug-related crimes (drugpolicy.com)....
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...In the book, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, by Michelle Alexander—a Ohio State University professor, director of Racial Justice Project at ACLU of Northern California, and director of the Civil Rights Clinics at Stanford Law School—was the uncovering research about the system of mass incarceration, which are rules, policies, and laws that helped control the amount of criminals entering and leaving prisons. The author begins with slavery and continues to explain the Jim Crow segregation, which both represent mass incarcerations. Mass incarceration prevents discrimination towards groups of people. For example, the author states, “After the death of slavery, the idea of race lives on.” (26) This specific example...
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...Racial Profiling Furnie J. Oden IV Strayer University- Lithonia Campus Some people wonder what is racial profiling. Racial profiling derives from fear of the unknown, miss-education, slavery, and incarceration. Since the beginning of slavery African Americans have dealt with profiling due to their identity. Racial profiling deals with selecting a person within a stereotypical criteria according to their specific racial group. The main reason in advocating racial profiling in the background of criminal study can enlarge the possibility of arresting criminals. Paul Bou-Habib stated, “If the rate at which members of a specific racial group commits a crime is higher than that of other criminals will be caught if the police concentrate their efforts on investigating members of the racial group in question?” (2011, p.34). It is not right when police officers, political officials, and judges make decisions based on predetermined racist and some would say ignorant beliefs. For example, my friend was in McDonald’s parking lot and he was in the process of switching seats with his friend because he was exhausted of driving. . The term “driving while black has been used to describe the practice of law enforcement officials to stop African-American drivers without probable cause” (Weatherspoon, 2004). This is one of the leading minority men are pulled over in their vehicle. Which usually leads to a unwarranted stop...
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...believe that full equality been achieved would do well to notice many African Americans' reality today. An extraordinary amount of blacks are still barred from voting because in nearly every state, as convicted felons cannot vote. Hundreds of thousands of African Americans have served time in prison as a result of drug convictions and are branded felons for life. Voting is also barred for those currently incarcerated. Alexander uncovers the system of mass incarceration: a system comprised of laws, rules, policies, and customs that control criminals both in and out of prison. The greatest instigator of mass incarceration is the War on Drugs. Rather than combat drug activity, the War on Drugs has served as a deliberate strategy to control people of color and remove them from the political process, which is racist in both application and design. Alexander suggests that the War on Drugs and mass incarceration constitute a "rebirth of caste" in America. Beginning with slavery and continuing with Jim Crow segregation, mass incarceration places entire groups of people into discriminatory positions in society, permanently. The War on Drugs began in earnest in the mid-1980s, training local law enforcement agencies with the means to increase crackdowns on communities in search of drugs. Alexander notices, however, that many of the policies implemented by the War on Drugs usurps the U.S. Constitution and are specifically targeted at communities of color. The "stop-and-frisk" rule, for example...
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...Michelle Alexander, Civil Rights Attorney, details the occurrence of legalized discrimination in her book called "The New Jim Crow." The New Jim Crow indicates that even though slavery has been long abolished, systemized inequalities still exists. There is a strong existence in employment opportunities, educational systems, public assistance, and jury selections across the country. Without taking a closer look, one could easily believe that the prison system is designed to rehabilitate those who have had trouble with the law. However, there is a question as to whether those who are truly rehabilitated have access to equal opportunities when released from correctional facilities. One can further question whether those persons are given fair...
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...Shawnta Morris CJE 101-01 Research Paper October1, 2013 Racial Profiling and the Effects it has on Blacks in the Criminal Justice System. Some people wonder what is racial profiling. Racial profiling deals with miss-education, slavery, and incarceration. Since the beginning of slavery African Americans have suffered due to their identity. Racial profiling deals with selecting a person for their complaint of a specific racial group. The main reason in advocating racial profiling in the background of criminal study can enlarge the possibility of arresting criminals. Paul Bou-Habib stated, “If the rate at which members of a specific racial group commits a crime is higher than that of other criminals will be caught if the police concentrate their efforts on investigating members of the racial group in question?” (2011, p.34). It is injustice, when police officers, political officials, and judges have learned how to automatically have a racist attitude towards blacks. For example, my friend was in McDonald’s parking lot and he was in the process of switching seats with his friend because he was exhausted of driving. While leaving the parking lot, the officer had pulled them over because he seen a black guy get out of his car and thought something seemed suspicious. The officer implied that my friend did not use his right turning signal. The term “driving while black has been used to describe the practice of law enforcement officials to stop African-American drivers without probable...
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...United States of America started when the 13th amendment was established. The thirteenth amendment was considered a reconstruction amendment along with the fourteenth and fifteenth amendment. The thirteenth amendment purpose was to ban slavery and involuntary servitude. The fourteenth amendment defined natural citizenship and granted every citizen equal rights. The fifteenth amendment declares every citizen the right to vote. The reconstruction amendments are viewed as a constructive apparatus for the United States judicial system. However, the thirteenth amendment includes exceptions to who's granted freedom rights. “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as...
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...a. The overall explanation for high incarceration rates in blacks is the fact that racism and “oppression” are still an everyday part of our society. The poverty levels and ambition levels of the lower class deem them outlaws because of the fact that achieving success when at the bottom is looked at as impossible goal. SO people set out to the streets to hustle and make money without having to do any hard work. b. Black have a high incarceration rate on death row because of the fact that within the realms of poverty, there are family’s, and gangs, and when you have nothing you hold dear to the little that you have. And when something or someone is taken from you, payback is the only answer. Violence begets violence, when someone shoots up your homeboy, the only way to get pay back is to return the violence. In a 1990 examination of death penalty sentencing conducted by the United States General Accounting Office noted that the race of the victim was more likely to be charged with capital murder or given the death penalty on those whom murdered whites than those who murdered blacks (Capital Punishment in Context, n.d.). The best explanation for high incarceration rates for Blacks compared to their percent of the general population is that because there is still discrimination and racism still exist, Blacks and minorities experiencing poverty have higher incarceration rates than the general population coming from a wealthy and well-educated background. Some Blacks rely on selling...
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...Canadian confederation occurred on July 1, 1867 when the British colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into one Dominion of Canada. Prior to confederation, the 1793 Anti Slavery Act was a significant legal reform that revolutionized Canadian racial ideologies. Throughout history, black individuals were considered slaves. They were the property of their white owners and were forced to preform domestic and physically exhaustive agricultural work. Black individuals were dehumanized and seen as inferior to their white counterparts. Black women were sexually assaulted by their white slave owners in order to produce more slaves. Additionally, when black women had children, the child became the property of the white plantation...
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...issue facing the nation. Immediately budgets of federal law enforcement agencies increased. The Reagan administration launched a media campaign that publicized the emergence of crack cocaine in inner-city neighborhoods that had little industry and high unemployment. Decline in employment opportunities in the inner-city increased incentives to sell crack. Crack hit the street in 1985 which lead to an increase in violence at the same time as anger from joblessness intensified. Joblessness and crack entered the inner-city at the same time a fierce backlash against the Civil Rights Movement was created through the War on Drugs.16 In the early 1990s, resistance to an introduction of a new system of racialized social control – mass incarceration disintegrated across the political spectrum. Law enforcement budgets increased, and prison and jail construction rose. Subsequently, prison population increased with increasing numbers of African Americans and Hispanic/Latinos. Legislation passed during the Clinton presidency, Garrett 7 enabled public housing to be denied or revoked from anyone convicted of crime which again negatively impacted African Americans and Latinoes.17 Crack and powdered cocaine are the same substance, but possession or selling of this illegal drug can result in different treatment by the criminal judicial system. The presence of 500 grams of cocaine can lead to five years in imprisonment, but five grams of crack cocaine results in the same length of...
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